You know as Black women, there is so much that we can do to our hair. The options are almost limitless. A lot of people don’t know it, but my hair is natural now. I have not had a perm in it for a while now, maybe almost a year? I don’t know the date exactly. I went natural because I started wearing weaves often, and I would perm my hair and put a weave in two days later, which was very bad for my hair.
I’ll tell my hair story some other day. Right now, I’m wondering how often you wash your braids, if at all. Before now, I honestly did not wash my braids often because I didn’t know what will become of them after washing them. I did obsessively apply nice-smelling products on my hair, and I’m assuming it worked because Igwe did not complain. He’s not the kind to sugar coat anything. He would tell me straight up that my hair is funky, if he feels that way. But he didn’t.
My wet braids, not that you can tell they are wet.
It’s been two weeks since I braided my hair, and I just washed it. I have a notoriously dry scalp, so I soak it with scalp oil every other day. I just hate the dryness! So when I washed it yesterday, I concentrated on my scalp, trying to wash away all the products. I didn’t use my finger nails (they’re quite long) on my scalp, but I did use the tips of my fingers to rub it all over the place. And it felt good.
Cantu leave-in conditionder
Then I towel-dried it and put in some leave-in conditioner. This is the conditioner I used, and it does make my hair soft, but I don’t know if it’s appropriate for natural hair. I have no intention of giving it up until I use every last drop. Don’t worry, it’s almost gone.
So I really want to know how often you wash your braids? And how do you do it? Do you apply any special products to it? I have been so mean to my hair without even knowing it.
I wash mine every 1-2 weeks.
I moisturise everyday with a homemade spray – conditioner, olive oil, glycerin and water.
I did a video on my braid routine last year (sorry for the poor quality): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqHJj9yQbFE
Oh, yay. I’m gonna go watch it. Thanks.
Every two weeks without fail and use a homemade water based braid spray 3-4 time a week to keep them moisturized. I wash my weaves every two weeks as well and spray my roots with the braid spray. A simple homemade braid spray recipe guide looks something like this 4 parts water, 1 part glycerin, 1 part mixture of natural oils and 2 parts leave in conditioner or 4 parts water, 2 parts aloe vera juice, 1 part glycerin and 1 part natural oils mixture mixed together in a spray bottle. The best natural oils are coconut, avocado and olive oils because they are nourishing oils and have been scientifically proven to condition your hair and penetrate the hair shaft.
Wooow! Who knew Pendo was such as expert? Lol. Now, where do I get these natural oils? What kinda stores carry them? By the way, do you have natural hair, too?
Lol I am studying for my PHD in hairology. I am texlaxed which is where you relax your hair but not bone straight so you leave it with some texture. Natural oils can be bought at most local drugstores, big stores like Walmart etc you may have to check the food section for some of them like Olive Oil. Check online as well plenty available for there. I am big on hair blogs as well there are so many good ones out there some scientific from scientists like this one >http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/#uds-search-results or hair forums like this one > http://www.hairlista.com/ wealth of information on black haircare
Oh, I wish you hadn’t given me this link. I have been there reading all this science about hair, and now I’m more confused than when I started. Lol. I should just abandon this ship and move on. Kidding. I won’t. But boy, do I have a lot to learn!
I haven’t had braids/twists in ages. And 9.9 times out of 10 they were cornrows so i didn’t leave them in long enough to have to worry about a washing schedule. But on the rare occasion that i had twists or micros, i’d usually wash every two weeks or so and use dry shampoo in between.
I’ve heard about the dry shampoo, and I still have no idea what that is. Haven’t done corn rows in God knows how long (apart from doing corn rows for weaves).
I wash my braids every week without fail. I use VO5 Moisture Milk Shampoo and Conditioner. I wash my scalp GENTLY in order not to tangle up my new growth (my hair is natural) and smooth it down in a downward motion. I rinse out the shampoo and then do a quick co-wash. When my hair is about 70% air-dried, I add a leave-in conditioner (usually a moisturizing conditioner) and seal with argan-oil (beware of fakes!!! The real oil is expensive and extremely moisturizing). I spray my braids everyday with my homemade spray: 3 parts water, 1 part conditioner and 1 part glycerin. I also seal with argan-oil daily. When I take out my braids, I follow this regimen: prepoo with hot oil treatment, clarifying shampoo wash, protein treatment if needed, black tea rinse, co-wash and detangle, deep condition with steamer, leave in conditioner and style.
As for Cantu Shea Butter, it is a light PROTEIN treatment. I like it for my natural hair, but if your hair is protein sensitive, then you have to be careful with it. This generally means that it can make your hair really hard and unmanageable. And it doesn’t mix well with other products.
Sorry for my epistle 🙂
Chei!!!
This long regimen for braids? I’m about to just do gorimakpa and call it a day. Lol. I love your epistle though, it’s very informative. I don’t even know what it means yet to prepoo and co-wash. Who comes up with these terms? Hahaha. I’ve been using Cantu for a while, but it’s almost finished. I’m looking forward to a new hair product. I already know what brand I’m going for: Shea Moisture
LOL:
Prepoo = Pre Shampoo. Moisturizing your hair BEFORE you wash it. Most shampoos contain sodium laureth sulfate which is a form of detergent. It can strip your hair of healthy oils. Thus, a prepoo is meant to combat the stripping.
Co-wash: Washing your hair with conditioner ONLY. So, some people use the CG’s method only and don’t shampoo their hair (and no, it won’t stink :))
You need to maintain the moisture and protein balance in your hair to keep it manageable and growing. You probably need a clarifying shampoo wash (you have been using Cantu a lot, your hair is probably protein overloaded. So, try the African Black Soap Purification Masque by Shea Moisture before you do a MOISTURIZING deep condition.
Sorry again for my epistle 🙂
Ayodeji,
This your comment is sending me farther into depression. Lol. The more I read your comments, the more I realize how much I don’t know. And to think I have been watching so many YouTube videos for natural hair recently. So basically, I have not been learning anything. Ewoooo. Lol.
This is my first time using Cantu since braiding my hair. I used it after washing my hair two weeks ago (before braiding my hair) and then yesterday again when I washed my braids. So do I still need the purification mask?
Dear Vera,
I will send you an e-mail after COB 🙂
Ayodeji,
I’m not even gonna ask what COB means. You will not disgrace me on my blog, you hear me? You will not! Lol.
Have any of you tried using a “dry shampoo” instead of water. HERBAL CLEANSE “Dry Shampoo” by Organic Root Stimulator. A product like this might be particularly helpful during cold weather months. Some have complained that washing braids causes dirt/dandruff/product, etc. to clump at the root making it hard to wash away and causing roots to look white. My advice is to not wear the braids too long to allow this to happen. Braids typically should be worn for 2-4 weeks max.
Do they moisturize or oil their scalp after washing? That may be the cause of the whiteness at the roots. Also braided hair will clamp at the roots whether washed or not and using a braid spray whether homemade or store bought and oiling the scalp, you can use one or both it is a personal preference really actually helps get the root softer so there is less tangling on taking down the braids which leads to less breakage and then leads to length retention. The reason most women loose plenty of hair due to breakage on braid take down is because of the tangling at the roots that is not detangled properly because most of them take down dry hair and we all know that dry hair equals breakage. I always take down my braids using braid spray makes the experience much more pleasant and my roots a re soft and moisturized. Tea tree oil added to your shampoo, conditioner, braid spray or natural oil used to oil the scalp can effectively prevent and combat dandruff. Dry shampoo IMO serves the same function as hand sanitizers – you will still have to wash your hands eventually.
Pendo, yeah, that sounds like what dry shampoo. And I don’t like hand sanitizer either. I don’t know why we can’t just wash our hands. Now, I like this tea tree oil you mentioned, especially if it can help prevent and combat dandruff. Where do I get it from?
Drug store but you only need a few drops as it is an essential oil.
Alright. Thank you. Will go hunting!
My Lagos Life,
Two to four weeks?? That is not the Nigerian way oh! Our way is two to three months. Hahahaha. To be comepletely honest, I carry mine for six weeks. That’s what it’s been for a while now. Per the dry shampoo, no I have not tried it yet. I don’t even know what it is. For some reason, it doesn’t sound appealing to me, so I have never even tried to find out what it is.
I wear braids 8 months out of the year. When am wearing it I wash it after 4 weeks, then I wash it 1.5 – 2 weeks afterwards. My hair will swell and stick out of the braid or slip causing it to appear old. To maintain the new appearance I avoid washing it to soon. My hair does fine, I don’t pre-poo, semi-poo co-wash or whatever. I simply spray water and olive mixture three to five time a week to keep it moisturized and wrap it at night.
Arambe,
You’re right. Washing it does make it look a bit older. I’m new at all this, but I think I will definitely continue to wash it often, like once a week, and I’ll be learning everything else about pre pooing and all that, but I’m learning. Thanks, boo!
I am caucasian but with thick curly hair that is extremely unmanageable so about the entire top layer is in braids (about 1/3 of total hair) i redo braids individually as they need it. this can be every two weeks to every two months. i shampoo much like anybody else. Now these braids are completely my own hair so the routine is different.
Sne,
Thanks for responding. Oh, wow, I never thought about Caucasian hair being difficult. Interesting! I always assumed that Caucasian hair is just always easy to manage.
Hi, I only wash my hair right before I get it rebraided which is every two or three months. I don’t use a lot of stuff either. I use the Cantu Shea leave in moisturizer once after I get it rebraided and then spray my scalp with an oil mixture two or three times a week. It is growing like a weed! I started wearing braids July 18, 2013 and stopped perming my hair two months before that. My hair doesn’t smell at all and when I go to bed I braid it in one french braid down the back.
I wash mine every week or whenever it starts to smell funky. I do a scalp test every day–either a cotton ball soaked in a solution of baking soda and water or I wash my hands and use the pads of my bare finger–to know if there’s tons of buildup or if it smells. If it does, I either use the cotton ball method with the baking soda to cleanse my scalp and then do a full wash when I can. For the full wash: 1. I apply a mixture of natural humectants (which resist soakig up lots of water ex. olive oil, coconut oil, shea butter (melted) so natural hair wont become frizzy or matted) to my braids from attachment “bump” to where my hair ends 2. I mix tea tree shampoo with water (1/4 shampoo 3/4 water) so it wont be too concentrated and harder to wash out 3. I section my hair off and apply the mixture to my scalp only 4. I rinse my hair over the sink, letting the water run over my scalp alone (for the most part). I never wash the entire braided extensions because I dont want them to strain my scalp and edgees with the weight. 5. (Optional) If my ends look ratty, I comb/brush them and redip them in boiling water for that “new braids” look
Wow. This is a lot for me. I am already ready to quit. Lol. But thanks for the tips!
Hi ladies! I am a new foster/adoptive Caucasian mama to three beautiful African American kids. My 10 year old just got her hair braided and I want to make sure I do everything right so she feels pretty! I gather that I should wait 1-2 weeks before shampooing, but what shampoos do you recommend? Should I just be lightly massaging her natural hair at the scalp and rinse it out? I didn’t think getting her braids wet would be good since it will cause extra weight and make them look old. Then can I spray in a leave in conditioner once her hair is fairly dry?
I also read that using a cotton ball with sea breeze or witch hazel on the scalp between braids every few days will help with buildup/sweat. Is this true?
I’m sorry to ask silly questions but I want my girl to feel good about herself. She wears a cap at night and I make sure she doesn’t wear tight ponytails. Thank you ladies!!
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Hi, i keep my 5 year old daughter’s hair braided in box braids because i’m a single mother who works late long nights and have little time to manage her hair, any way i keep her braids in for one month at the most and after i take them out i wash her her with coconut milk and coconut conditioner and i use almond oil ,jojoba oil,cocunut oil cantu leave in conditioner,and olive oil and other oils to hydrate her hair ,condition and moisturize . i only wash her hair once a month but when i was it i wash it thoroughly and condition thoroughly.i never use heat on her hair